PepsiCo beats expectations but soda struggles

NEW YORK – PepsiCo is selling more of its snacks and drinks around the world but the maker of Frito-Lay, Gatorade and Quaker Oats is still trying to figure out how to sell more soda in the United States.

Its snacks business in North America also saw healthy growth, with Doritos and Lay’s helping lift revenue by 4 percent.

For its beverage business in the Americas, however, revenue was even as price hikes offset a decline in volume.

For the three months ended March 23, PepsiCo Inc. earned $1.08 billion, or 69 cents per share. That’s down from $1.13 billion, or 71 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding the impact of Venezuela’s currency devaluation and other items, it earned 77 cents per share. Analysts expected 70 cents.